Abdul Kircher Tells The Stories Of Those Overlooked By Society

Abdul Kircher is a young photographer based in New York City who acts to tell ‘the stories of people who are bypassed or overlooked’. He ‘makes’ photographs of citizens from what might sociologically be referred to as the underclass; the homeless, the poor, the addicted.

At only eighteen, Kircher tackles these issues head-on. He states that his pieces on homeless individuals, for example, are not intended to ‘show their struggles and flaws, but to show their beauty and strength that lies within them all. Just being able to survive on the streets makes them such intriguing people’. Kircher’s work is more than a few quick clicks of a camera that produce a simple social commentary. Rather than actively seeking out subjects, he lets the encounters with the people he photographs happen more naturally through the course of his daily life, taking time to meet and understand them. Writing prose or poems about these people, Kircher movingly describes them and their meeting, adding to his striking visual work with his words.

His photography receives acclaim on social media, followers on Instagram have written: “Your photos are amazing. They always let you see the things you never look at” and “Seriously love your photos! I feel like I’m unlearning all the s**t I’ve been conditioned to not like or think is ugly. You’ve captured the beauty in the things we look pass every day. I don’t know what your concepts are behind each photograph, but I’m glad to have to taken something beautiful from them”. There is certainly beauty in his photographs, such as one that depicts a couple who are both in wheelchairs kissing.

However his photographs aren’t always easy to look at as some depict characters that are down on their luck. One image portrays the leg of a homeless person who is sitting on the floor with faeces on his shoe and the bottom of his trousers.

Kircher comes across as very cool kind of guy, exuding self-aware confidence. Born in Germany to Turkish and German parents, not only is Kircher becoming established as a photographer but also as a model; notably having posed for Diesel with his thick curly hair, strong brows and beautiful eyes- one of which is blue, the other green.

It’s clear his key aim is authenticity- he doesn’t overdramatise or glamourise these subjects but seeks to empathetically document the lives of people with whom he comes into contact. With such hard-hitting body of work already, Kircher is a talent to watch.